Description

Beautifully named and a true North Welsh classic - and not even in the mountains of Snowdonia. Made famous by a spectacular picture in one of the Royal Robbins Rockcraft books. If you're in Wales, do this route. Although if the waves are big the climb may be wet.

It takes a traversing line leftwards across the huge and exposed Wen Slab for a few pitches on good holds with the odd tricky bit here and there, then makes a spectacular traverse across the arch (or Zawn) and up onto the grass.

When I did way back when I used all nuts, but I'm sure cams will work too - the rock is good.

Before doing the route I thought it was getting more credit than it deserved. After doing it I think it cant get enough. The climbing isnt spectacular, but is interesting enough. You do this route for the atmosphere! Also, I would say this route isnt much harder than 5.7, but the positions are intimidating and incredable

I haven't done this route, but I know its status and I think I can comment on the description here. It's a must-do, super-classic, adventurous sea cliff route, picking an intricate and very committing line through some very intimidating ground... and all people see on here is "traverse route"? I've written more about 4-bolt sport routes than that! Please can somebody who has done it write something more evocative? This page just doesn't do it justice

Nick, what exactly are you looking for? Its been a couple years now but Im sure I could scrape together a description. Pitch length, # of pitches, gear and route description? IMHO, the climbing is good but not that good, you do this route for the enviroment that you are in and the naure of it, not for the technical climbing.

Brad, I haven't done the route so I can't say exactly what I'm looking for (if I could say exactly, I'd just write it!)... number of pitches and total length are already on there, but that's just objective details. I guess for a route with a reputation like this, I expect a description to inspire. A bit of evocative prose about the situation, some of the history perhaps? From what I've heard the climbing itself (as you say) isn't spectacular, but it does break through some very unlikely terrain. Maybe when I get round to climbing it I'll suggest something.

When I did this I thought the climb was about the slab traverse. The last pitch was a shock and terrifying to look at because I just couldn't believe the climb went through that overhanging finish. Amazing jugs make it casual though.

Got to climb this recently, mistakenly rapped a little low but this offered us the opportunity to climb pitch two of quartz icicle. This was an incredible way to climb this wall in two, vastly different pitches. I highly recommend more people make this mistake.